“I feel like one of our strengths is that we don’t have one player you can key on,” said SIUE coach Paula Buscher.

The Cougars pounded the ball into the paint, scoring 42 of their 59 points inside. SIUE shot 38 percent (23-61) from the field while holding its opponents to 31 percent (16-52) shooting.

SIUE and UMSL were even after the first 20 minutes were complete. The Cougars’ run to start the second half put the team ahead for good.

“We had to pick up the energy on offense and defense to get us going,” said White.

“I thought the last four minutes of the second quarter we got it going,” said Buscher. “Before then, I didn’t think the tempo was in our favor.”

Robneisha Lee led UMSL with 10 points.

SIUE now heads to the road for its next three games. The Cougars travel to Northern Illinois on Friday. It’s back to tournament time Dec. 19-20 in DeLand, Florida, as the team faces Stetson and Bethune-Cookman.